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When Tony Popovic eventually gathered his maiden Socceroos squad, the fresh coach detailed a series of standards. Most were clear and to the point – suitable in light of the disruption following his abrupt entry, in the wake of Graham Arnold’s exit, and with under three weeks to prepare for vital 2026 World Cup qualifiers against China and Japan.

Popovic asserted that any player who aspired to pull on a Socceroos shirt would need to take on an “premier” attitude to earn, or maintain that privilege. But there was an additional theme. More an inspiration and more an evocation – and one that has been brought clearer into focus with every step taken on the journey towards the World Cup in North America.

“My expectations were to do something extraordinary, in my initial talk to the players,” Popovic says. “That remains the same.”

A little more than a year on from that team talk in an Adelaide hotel, plenty of other things have shifted, even if Popovic’s ambitions stay the same. The coach, for one, seems genuinely at home as Socceroos head. The 52-year-old’s reputation for strictness sharply contrasts with the open and at times cheerful figure engaging openly for over an hour in what have become semi-regular interviews with football media. Similarly have the fortunes of his team progressed, with recollections of a defeat to Bahrain and tie with Indonesia seeming fairly remote after successes over Japan and Saudi Arabia in June guaranteed the Socceroos’ place in next year’s global tournament.

Those triumphs came as part of an 11-game undefeated streak under Popovic, one that was only broken away by the United States earlier this month. It’s form that has taken the Socceroos to the unexpected brink of crashing pot two in the World Cup draw. The performances of November exhibition games against Venezuela, at the moment placed 50th in the world, and 13th-ranked Colombia – as well as Ecuador’s games against Canada and New Zealand, and the last games of European qualifying – carry weight in this context.

While Popovic acknowledges that he began in the job expecting to only be able to rely on a main squad of players, he now believes the group he can trust has expanded. This isn’t just through the rise of talented youth such as Nestory Irankunda, Max Balard, or Mohamed Touré as genuine international players. There are also the examples of Miloš Degenek’s reappearance from the sidelines and Paul Izzo’s development into a genuine Socceroos keeper with the capability to push Maty Ryan.

“The squad has completely changed in my mind – of what’s possible with players that have joined,” Popovic says. “I first thought, ‘OK, this is my group; I don’t truly have much beyond this. Just get by and make them better.’ Now, I think like there are 15, 20 players that have entered that, and I’m sure there are additional ones to come that I believe can help make us better as a squad at the World Cup.”

This surprising appearance of talent, and the change in mindset it has sparked in Popovic, has paved the way for players on the fringes of the squad. Even those not yet viewed within those ranks can keep faith that, come June next year, they could be on the plane. A player like Adrian Segečić might be about to miss a month of playing due to an ankle injury, but if he – or any other player – keeps to play regularly, then the coach is making clear they’re every chance of being part of his plans.

“I don’t want to put a restriction or a end on that – to reveal in March that this is our squad, and there may be one or two more additions,” Popovic says. “No, I want every player to know that they have an chance. Why can’t there be one more player that joins in June?”

But this broadening, in a way, returns us to Popovic’s initial speech as Socceroos head coach. For just as much as he wants players to exceed expectations him, to do something special and go beyond the predictions others have for them, he wants his team to have the same philosophy.

“Saying I want to do something unique is just ‘we don’t want to have limits’,” Popovic says. “We don’t want to pigeonhole ourselves into ‘let’s be participants at the World Cup, and let’s go home and congratulate ourselves for being there’.

“I emphasize it to the group: one day, Australia will go a long way in the World Cup. And why not this group? Why do we have to wait two or three World Cups, when I’m sitting back and cheering something exceptional from the Socceroos? Why should we have boundaries? Why not do it now?”